From Me to You
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"From Me to You" is a song by the English rock band
the Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...
that was released in April 1963 as their third single. It was written by
Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...
and
John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...
. The song was the Beatles' first number 1 hit on what became the official UK singles chart but the second, after "
Please Please Me ''Please Please Me'' is the debut studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. Produced by George Martin, it was released on EMI's Parlophone label on 22 March 1963 in the United Kingdom, following the success of the band's first two s ...
", on most of the other singles charts published in the UK at the time. "From Me to You" failed to make an impact in the United States at the time of its initial release. Instead, a 1963 cover version released by
Del Shannon Charles Weedon Westover (December 30, 1934 – February 8, 1990), better known by his stage name Del Shannon, was an American musician, singer and songwriter, best known for his 1961 number-one ''Billboard'' hit "Runaway". In 1999, he was induc ...
resulted in the song becoming the first
Lennon–McCartney Lennon–McCartney was the songwriting partnership between English musicians John Lennon (1940–1980) and Paul McCartney (born 1942) of the Beatles. It is the best-known and most successful musical collaboration ever by records sold, with the ...
tune to enter the US pop charts. The Beatles' original was rereleased in the US in January 1964 as the b-side to "Please Please Me", and reached number 41.


Composition

Lennon and McCartney began writing "From Me to You" while on a
coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...
heading to Shrewsbury as part of the Beatles' tour with Helen Shapiro. The title was inspired by the name of the letters section of the '' New Musical Express'', which they had been reading: "From You to Us". McCartney noted that their early songs tended to include the words "I", "me" or "you" in them, as a way of making them "very direct and personal" to the band's fans. In his 1980 interview with ''
Playboy ''Playboy'' is an American men's Lifestyle magazine, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from H ...
'', Lennon recalled writing the song: Before that interview, Lennon had stated, "We nearly didn't record it because we thought it was too bluesy at first, but when we'd finished it and George Martin had scored it with harmonica, it was alright." McCartney also talked about rearranging the song in 1964: Singer-songwriter
Roger Greenaway Roger John Reginald Greenaway, (born 23 August 1938) is an English singer, songwriter and record producer, best known for his collaborations with Roger Cook. His compositions have included "You've Got Your Troubles" and the transatlantic mill ...
recounted a story: Regardless, the song was regarded by the Beatles as innovative and catchy enough to be released as a single. This was one Lennon–McCartney song that the duo truly co-wrote; McCartney described it as "very much co-written".


Melody and lyrics

"From Me to You" comprises five verses and two bridges. The form is Intro V V B V V B V Coda. The first half of the fourth verse is instrumental. The last half of each verse is a mini-refrain, while the lyrics of the bridges are identical. The verses each consist of a rather short eight measures played in C major. In the bridge the song modulates to the subdominant (IV) key:
F major F major (or the key of F) is a major scale based on F, with the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature has one flat. Its relative minor is D minor and its parallel minor is F minor. The F major scale is: : F major is the ...
. The tonic-subdominant modulation is almost a cliché, but Lennon & McCartney avoid the cliché by going another route from I to IV than the standard I–I7–IV. At the bridge's climax, the chord changes are accompanied by "woo!" Another characterising element in the bridge is the augmented chord – a Gaug – that ends the bridge and leads back to home key (C major). Lennon plays prominent harmonica solos during the beginning, middle and end of the song, as he did with "
Love Me Do "Love Me Do" is the official debut single by the English rock band the Beatles, backed by " P.S. I Love You". When the single was originally released in the United Kingdom on 5 October 1962, it peaked at number 17. It was released in the Unite ...
". McCartney said of the song: The idea of singing the song's opening lick—the "da da da da da dum dum da" part—was suggested by
George Martin Sir George Henry Martin (3 January 1926 – 8 March 2016) was an English record producer, arranger, composer, conductor, and musician. He was commonly referred to as the " Fifth Beatle" because of his extensive involvement in each of the ...
, the Beatles' producer. The group thought it unusual but put their trust in Martin. "In a way, this made
he Beatles He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' i ...
aware of George's enormous musical sense," EMI producer Ron Richards later said. In the song, the singer offers his love to the object of his affections—he has "everything that you want". Although the song is based on singular first-person pronouns, it lacks a lead singer.


Recording and UK release

George Martin Sir George Henry Martin (3 January 1926 – 8 March 2016) was an English record producer, arranger, composer, conductor, and musician. He was commonly referred to as the " Fifth Beatle" because of his extensive involvement in each of the ...
said of the song, "I asked them for another song as good as '
Please Please Me ''Please Please Me'' is the debut studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. Produced by George Martin, it was released on EMI's Parlophone label on 22 March 1963 in the United Kingdom, following the success of the band's first two s ...
', and they brought me one—'From Me to You.' ... There seemed to be a bottomless well of songs." The recording on 5 March 1963 at
EMI Studios Abbey Road Studios (formerly EMI Recording Studios) is a recording studio at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music ...
in 6 takes with 7 edit pieces and went without a hitch and on 11 April
Parlophone Parlophone Records Limited (also known as Parlophone Records and Parlophone) is a German–British record label founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch of the label was founded on 8 August 192 ...
released "From Me to You" in the UK as a single, with " Thank You Girl" on the B-side, catalogue number R5015. Nine days later, it kicked off a twenty-one week run in the British charts, reaching number one on 4 May, a position it would retain for seven weeks. "From Me to You" featured Lennon playing harmonica in a
Jimmy Reed Mathis James Reed (September 6, 1925 – August 29, 1976) was an American blues musician and songwriter. His particular style of electric blues was popular with blues as well as non-blues audiences. Reed's songs such as "Honest I Do" (1957), " ...
-inspired blues style he had learned from
Delbert McClinton Delbert McClinton (born November 4, 1940) is an American blues rock and electric blues singer-songwriter, guitarist, harmonica player, and pianist. From his first professional stage appearance in 1957 to his most recent national tour in 2018, ...
, another American who was on the same bill with the Beatles in the early Sixties. "It's chiseled in stone now that I taught Lennon how to play harmonica," McClinton said. "John said, 'Show me something.' I was in a pretty unique position, because there just weren't a lot of people playing harmonica in popular music." "From Me to You" was the first Beatles song to reach number one in the UK and is widely considered to be their first chart-topping song, for although "Please Please Me" reached the summit on almost every chart, it was only number two on '' Record Retailer''s chart, generally considered to be the most authoritative for the time. "From Me to You" would be the first of eleven consecutive British number one singles by the Beatles. "From Me to You" replaced
Gerry and the Pacemakers Gerry and the Pacemakers were a British beat group prominent in the 1960s Merseybeat scene. In common with the Beatles, they came from Liverpool, were managed by Brian Epstein, and were recorded by George Martin. Their early successes alongsid ...
' "
How Do You Do It "How Do You Do It?" is the debut single by Liverpudlian band Gerry and the Pacemakers. It was written by Mitch Murray. The song reached number one in the UK Singles Chart on 11 April 1963, where it stayed for three weeks. History The song was wri ...
", a song that had been offered to the Beatles (and even recorded by them, though it remained officially unreleased until 1995) but ultimately rejected by them in favour of "Please Please Me". Gerry & The Pacemakers, who also hailed from
Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...
, were very much rivals of the Beatles in their early days—Gerry and the Pacemakers attained the first number one ("How Do You Do It") before the Beatles, and also claimed their second and third number ones before the Beatles did, slowly losing steam afterwards as Beatlemania launched and the Beatles dominated music worldwide in 1964. A true indication of how successful the Beatles became thanks to "From Me to You" (though it would soon be overshadowed by "
She Loves You "She Loves You" is a song written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney and recorded by English rock band the Beatles for release as a single in 1963. The single set and surpassed several sales records in the United Kingdom charts, and set a record i ...
" and "
I Want to Hold Your Hand "I Want to Hold Your Hand" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles. Written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, and recorded on 17 October 1963, it was the first Beatles record to be made using four-track equipment. With advance orders ...
") was expressed by McCartney: "The first time I thought we'd really made it, was when I was lying in bed one morning, and I heard a milkman whistling 'From Me to You'. Actually, I'm sure that I once heard a bird whistling it as well. I swear I did!"


First US release

When it released "
Please Please Me ''Please Please Me'' is the debut studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. Produced by George Martin, it was released on EMI's Parlophone label on 22 March 1963 in the United Kingdom, following the success of the band's first two s ...
" in the United States,
Vee-Jay Records Vee-Jay Records is an American record label founded in the 1950s, located in Chicago and specializing in blues, jazz, rhythm and blues and rock and roll. The label was founded in Gary, Indiana in 1953 by Vivian Carter and James C. Bracken, a ...
signed a licensing agreement giving it the right of first refusal on Beatles records for five years. Despite the failure of "Please Please Me" to catch on, Vee-Jay chose to release "From Me to You"; as a result, it was never turned down by
Capitol A capitol, named after the Capitoline Hill in Rome, is usually a legislative building where a legislature meets and makes laws for its respective political entity. Specific capitols include: * United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. * Numerous ...
, because it was never offered to them. "From Me to You" was released on Vee-Jay 522, with " Thank You Girl" on the B-side, on 27 May 1963. Even though '' Cash Box'' magazine called it a "Pick of the Week" when it was released, it initially failed even more miserably than its predecessor; through the end of June, "From Me to You" sold fewer than 4,000 copies and had failed to chart anywhere. When
Del Shannon Charles Weedon Westover (December 30, 1934 – February 8, 1990), better known by his stage name Del Shannon, was an American musician, singer and songwriter, best known for his 1961 number-one ''Billboard'' hit "Runaway". In 1999, he was induc ...
released a cover version of "From Me to You" on Bigtop Records in June , Vee-Jay tried to stimulate more interest in the original, both by placing magazine ads and by sending out additional promotional copies of the 45 stamped with the words "The Original Hit". But the biggest boost to the Beatles' version came from
Dick Biondi Richard O. Biondi (born September 13, 1932) is an American Top 40 and Oldies disc jockey. Calling himself The Wild I-tralian, he was one of the original "screamers," known for his screaming delivery as well as wild antics on the air and off. In ...
, who had played "Please Please Me" on WLS in
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
. Biondi was fired by WLS in May and relocated to
KRLA 1110 KRDC (1110 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Pasadena, California, serving Greater Los Angeles as a full-time simulcast of ESPN Radio affiliate KSPN. The station is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company and is th ...
in
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
in June. He was able to convince his new employer to add "From Me to You" to its playlist, and it entered KRLA's "Tune-Dex" on 14 July, spending six weeks on the chart and peaking at 32 on 11 August. Because of the airplay, and resulting sales, in Los Angeles, "From Me to You" made the ''Billboard''
Bubbling Under the Hot 100 Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (also known as Bubbling Under the Hot 100) is a chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine in the United States. The chart lists the top songs that have not yet charted on the main ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Chart ...
chart for three weeks, peaking at number 116 on 10 August, the same time the single peaked in Los Angeles. It was the first time the Beatles appeared on a national chart in ''Billboard''. The late attention in Los Angeles spurred sales of the 45; in the end, the original edition of "From Me to You" sold approximately 22,000 copies, roughly three times as many as "Please Please Me" had.


Second US release

Vee-Jay chose to couple "From Me to You" with "Please Please Me" when it re-released the single on 3 January 1964, shortly after film of the Beatles had appeared on ''The Jack Paar Program'', the
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
television
prime-time Prime time or the peak time is the block of broadcast programming taking place during the middle of the evening for a television show. It is mostly targeted towards adults (and sometimes families). It is used by the major television networks to ...
version of Paar's previous ''
Tonight Show ''The Tonight Show'' is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. The show has been hosted by six comedians: Steve Allen (1954–1957), Jack Paar (1957–1962), Johnny Carson (1962–1992), Jay Leno (1992–2009 and 2010 ...
''. Had Vee-Jay known how all-encompassing Beatlemania would become, it likely would have saved "From Me to You" for use as an A-side, the way it did with "
Twist and Shout "Twist and Shout" is a 1961 song written by Phil Medley and Bert Berns (later credited as "Bert Russell"). It was originally recorded by the Top Notes, but it did not become a hit in the record charts until it was reworked by the Isley Brothers ...
" and "
Do You Want to Know a Secret "Do You Want to Know a Secret" is a song by English rock band the Beatles from their 1963 album '' Please Please Me'', sung by George Harrison. In the United States, it was the first top ten song to feature Harrison as a lead singer, reaching N ...
". But even as a B-side, "From Me to You" entered the ''Billboard'' chart on 7 March and peaked at number 41 and number 6 in
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
. The double-sided hit sold approximately 1.1 million copies in 1964.


''Help!''

An instrumental arrangement, "From Me to You Fantasy" is used in the film, ''
Help! ''Help!'' is the fifth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles and the soundtrack to their film of the same name. It was released on 6 August 1965. Seven of the fourteen songs, including the singles " Help!" and " Ticket to Ride", ...
'', arranged by
Ken Thorne Kenneth Thorne (26 January 1924 – 9 July 2014) was a British television and film score composer. Early life Thorne was born in Dereham, a town in the English county of Norfolk. Thorne began his musical career as a pianist with the big bands ...
, and is track 3 of the original U.S. release of the soundtrack album. It appears during scenes of attempts to remove the ring from Ringo's finger while he sleeps in the Beatles' communal apartment.


Album availability

"From Me to You" made its first album appearance (overall) on the Canadian ''
Twist and Shout "Twist and Shout" is a 1961 song written by Phil Medley and Bert Berns (later credited as "Bert Russell"). It was originally recorded by the Top Notes, but it did not become a hit in the record charts until it was reworked by the Isley Brothers ...
'' LP in 1964. That same year, it made its US album debut on Vee-Jay's ''
Jolly What! ''Jolly What! England's Greatest Recording Stars: The Beatles & Frank Ifield on Stage'' is a 1964 compilation album, released by Vee-Jay Records and featuring tracks by English rock band the Beatles and by the Australian-English easy listening ...
England's Greatest Recording Stars: The Beatles and Frank Ifield on Stage''; its first appearance on a "regular" US Beatles album wouldn't come until 1973 when it appeared on the
double LP A double album (or double record) is an audio album that spans two units of the primary medium in which it is sold, typically either records or compact disc. A double album is usually, though not always, released as such because the recording i ...
compilation ''
1962–1966 ''1962–1966'', also known as the Red Album, is a compilation album of hit songs by the English rock band the Beatles, spanning the years indicated in the title. Released with its counterpart ''1967–1970'' (the "Blue Album") in 1973, the do ...
''. In 1966, "From Me to You" was first issued in the UK on '' A Collection of Beatles Oldies'', followed by the ''1962–1966'' compilation seven years later. The first release on CD was in 1988 when it was included in the ''
Past Masters ''Past Masters'' is a two-disc compilation album set by the English rock band the Beatles. It was originally released as two separate volumes on 7 March 1988, as part of the first issue of the band's catalogue on compact disc. The set compiles ...
'' compilation. It was later released on the ''1962–1966'' double CD and the single CD compilation '' 1''.


Alternative mixes

The mono version, which was issued as a single in 1963, has appeared on the 1988 issue of ''Past Masters'', the ''1962–1966'' CD reissues, the '' 1'' compilation released in 2000, and ''
Mono Masters ''Mono Masters'' is a compilation album by the Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influe ...
'' in 2009. The stereo version was included on the 1966 compilation ''A Collection of Beatles Oldies'', the original LP issues of ''1962–1966'' in 1973, and the 2009 reissue of ''Past Masters''. The intro to the stereo version (recorded on two tracks) lacks the harmonica inserted into the mono mix.


Chart history


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Personnel

*
John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...
vocal, rhythm guitar, harmonica *
Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...
vocal, bass guitar * George Harrisonlead guitar * Ringo Starrdrums :Personnel per
Ian MacDonald Ian MacCormick (known by the pseudonym Ian MacDonald; 3 October 1948 – 20 August 2003) was a British music critic and author, best known for both '' Revolution in the Head'', his critical history of the Beatles which borrowed techniques from ...


Del Shannon cover

On 18 April 1963, the Beatles were one of 15 acts to play at ''Swinging Sound '63'', an all-star concert at the Royal Albert Hall in
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
. They played "From Me to You" and "Twist and Shout".
Del Shannon Charles Weedon Westover (December 30, 1934 – February 8, 1990), better known by his stage name Del Shannon, was an American musician, singer and songwriter, best known for his 1961 number-one ''Billboard'' hit "Runaway". In 1999, he was induc ...
was also on the bill that night. After the concert, he told
John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...
that he was going to record "From Me to You" because he liked the falsetto parts in the song. . At first, Lennon was flattered, but he quickly changed his mind, realizing that a cover version by Shannon might hurt the Beatles' chances of having a hit in the States. As it turned out, Lennon was temporarily right, but neither artist's version was a big hit in America. In early June, Bigtop Records released Shannon's version of "From Me to You" as the follow-up to " Two Kinds of Teardrops." It entered the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 on 29 June, becoming the first Lennon–McCartney composition to make the American charts. It spent four weeks on the chart and peaked at number 77. It was even more successful in
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
as it peaked at number 15 on the WLS "Silver Dollar Survey". Shannon's recording follows the Beatles' original almost verbatim, except for a slightly faster tempo and
fade-out In audio engineering, a fade is a gradual increase or decrease in the level of an audio signal. The term can also be used for film cinematography or theatre lighting in much the same way (see fade (filmmaking) and fade (lighting)). A recor ...
. "At that time no one had heard of the Beatles here (the US), but I knew they were great writers so I just picked up on one of their songs," Shannon said later.


Chart history


Later versions

Bobby McFerrin Robert Keith McFerrin Jr. (born March 11, 1950) is an American folk and jazz singer. He is known for his vocal techniques, such as singing fluidly but with quick and considerable jumps in pitch—for example, sustaining a melody while also rap ...
covered the song in his 1986 album, ''Spontaneous Inventions''. In 1989
Kids Incorporated ''Kids Incorporated'' (also known as ''Kids Inc.'') is an American children's television program that began production in the mid-1980s and continued airing well into the early 1990s. It was largely a youth-oriented program with musical performan ...
covered "From Me to You" in the Season 6 episode "Never Too Old". In November 2008, a slowed-down cover version using only piano and vocals became the first Beatles song to be used in a British advertising campaign when it was used in
John Lewis John Robert Lewis (February 21, 1940 – July 17, 2020) was an American politician and civil rights activist who served in the United States House of Representatives for from 1987 until his death in 2020. He participated in the 1960 Nashville ...
' Christmas marketing. On 4 March 2016, a remixed version of the song was released by
Yolanda Be Cool Yolanda Be Cool are an Australian music duo made up of Andrew Stanley and Matthew Handley. Biography In 2010, they collaborated with Australian producer DCUP (real name Duncan MacLennan) to release an international single " We No Speak American ...
&
DCUP Duncan MacLennan (born 13 March 1985), better known by his stage name DCUP (pronounced "D-cup"), is an Australian record producer, DJ and remixer. He is best known for his collaboration with fellow Australian band Yolanda Be Cool on their inte ...
. American
indie rock Indie rock is a subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the music they produc ...
band Futurebirds included the song on its 2016 EP "Portico I".


Notes


References

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:From Me To You The Beatles songs 1963 singles Del Shannon songs Bee Gees songs UK Singles Chart number-one singles Irish Singles Chart number-one singles Number-one singles in New Zealand Number-one singles in South Africa Parlophone singles Vee-Jay Records singles Song recordings produced by George Martin Songs written by Lennon–McCartney Songs published by Northern Songs 1963 songs The Crickets songs